


Going Down to Pick Him Up

by abstractconcept



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: AU, Colorado Avalanche, Cunnilingus, F/M, Genderbending, Genderswap, Genderswitch, Hockey, Insecurities, M/M, Magic, Magical High School AU, Oral Sex, Rare Pairings, eager puppy of a boyfriend
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-30
Updated: 2015-01-30
Packaged: 2018-03-09 18:12:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,460
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3259481
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/abstractconcept/pseuds/abstractconcept
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>At Gabe and Matt's magical high school, spending one week as the opposite sex is a graduation requirement. Matt reluctantly does his week, but he had no idea he'd feel so insecure or defensive as a girl. It doesn't help that his friends are all a bunch of immature assholes. Luckily, his boyfriend is basically a big, playful puppy of a guy who would do absolutely anything to make him feel better.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Going Down to Pick Him Up

**Author's Note:**

> They are in high school but I didn't give them ages, so the reader might or might not consider this 'underage.' Just fair warning.
> 
> Also, uh, I stepped WAY outside my usual writing comfort zone with this, so please be gentle.

Matt Duchene emerged from the nurse’s office on wobbling legs. His school-issued clothes felt simultaneously much too big—like he was wearing a tent, for God’s sake—and much too revealing, even though they covered absolutely everything he had and everything that was no longer there.

Gabe was waiting for him, back against the wall of the corridor, slouched there like a truant—which he was, since he was obviously missing his class. “You okay? You’re white as a ghost,” he said.

“I told you not to come here!” Matt growled. “I told you to fucking fuck off for the day!” He’d been emphatic about it. Matt held his books tightly to his chest and tried to sweep past with as much dignity as possible, but Gabe grabbed his arm. Matt jerked away like Gabe’s touch was poison, his face hot.

Gabe looked shocked. “Gosh, Matty, we’re still boyfriends, aren’t we?”

Matt’s shoulders hunched. “So to speak,” he spat.

Gabe hesitated, looking all wounded and worried. He wasn’t used to Matty having a temper. “Can’t I just walk you to class?”

Matt let out a long, long breath. He didn’t want Gabe to walk him anywhere. He wanted to be alone. What he really wanted was to go right back to his dorm, crawl under the covers, and stay there until this whole horrible week was over. But that wouldn’t be allowed, and if Gabe was with him it might discourage any witty remarks from the other guys. Matt shrugged. “I guess,” he mumbled. Gabe reached out again, and Matt stepped sharply away. “ _If_ you don’t touch me,” he added hotly.

He could tell Gabe was hurt, but Gabe only nodded. They walked stiffly down the hall towards Matt’s first class of the day—AP Enchanting. The teacher, Ms. Henderson, was usually pretty nice, and the nurse had assured Matt that she would be understanding if he was a little late today, but he didn’t care. Being late would mean he’d have to slink in after everyone else, with all eyes on him.

“Come on, it’s only for a week, Matty,” Gabe consoled him.

“It’s been five minutes and it already feels like forever,” Matt groaned. He wanted to kill someone. Iggy had talked to him yesterday about it, and he’d sworn it was no big deal, the liar.

“Everyone has to. It’s a graduation requirement.”

“Don’t you think I know that?” Matt was absolutely miserable—and terrified—and angry. It wasn’t fair to change something like _that_ about a person if they didn’t want to, and damn the experience. He wondered if he shouldn’t have gotten it over with his freshman year, instead of waiting until the last minute.

“Looking good, cupcake!” Nate MacKinnon called cheerfully as he passed. Matt shot him a poisonous look, and Nate tried to duck behind Ginner, who wolf-whistled.

Enraged, Matt got right up in Ginner’s face, despite the fact that he was a couple of inches shorter on a good day and now barely came up to his chin. “Shut. The fuck. Up,” he snarled, jabbing a finger into Jamie’s chest. “Because I swear to Christ if you don’t, if you say _one. Fucking. Thing._ I’m going to fuck your shit up _so_ bad.” Despite the fact that Matt had nothing but approximately a hundred and twenty pounds of pure fucking aggravation at his disposal, he actually seemed to cow the older boy.

“Wow, sorry, Dutchy,” Ginner said. He glanced up at Gabe, like he was hoping Gabe would come to his rescue or something. Matt stole a look at Gabe too, to see if Gabe was even on his side, but Gabe was just shaking his head, wide-eyed, like he didn’t know what was going on either. Seeing the usually happy-go-lucky Matty Duchene turn furious seemed to confuse everyone. Matt turned his ferocious glare back to McGinn, who gulped. “I wasn’t—I didn’t mean—”

“Dutchy,” Gabe said gently, tugging his arm. “Come on. He didn’t mean anything by it. Come on, you’re gonna make us both late for class.” Reluctantly, Matt let him pull him away. “Herregud, you’re scary when you get mad,” Gabe commented as Matt stalked down the hall. He must have been really thrown, because he rarely, if ever, reverted to Swedish these days.

Matt didn’t reply. He hated every moment of this. How was he supposed to get through the day with guys taunting him and bothering him the whole time? He ignored the little voice in the back of his head that sounded like Ms. Henderson explaining patiently, _That’s the whole point, Mr. Duchene._

They finally reached the classroom door and Matt shifted his books from one arm to the other. “See ya,” he grunted. He was half distracted by his shifting books, and only realized Gabe was leaning down when the other boy’s face was about half an inch from his. Matt shoved his shoulder. “What do you think you’re doing?” he snapped, face burning. “I’m not going to _kiss_ you!”

Gabe made a hurt sound—some kind of hybrid between a yelp and a whimper, with overtones of _why?_

Matt turned to him, exasperated. “What?” he demanded crossly.

“But—we—why not?” Gabe stood there looking sad, tall and kind of gangly, but with promising muscles in all the right places. He scratched his elbow. “I _always_ kiss you goodbye.”

“I’m a _girl,_ Gabe!” Matt growled.

Gabe looked blank. “So?”

“So just—just don’t, okay? I don’t want to. Not until I’m a guy again.”

Now Gabe looked absolutely astounded. “Why not?”

“I _just. Don’t. Want to._ Okay?” Matt said through gritted teeth. How could Gabe not understand how weird and uncomfortable it was, to be touched in this _other_ skin? How frightened and small and ugly Matt felt? And how humiliating it would be to have to say it all out loud?

But Gabe couldn’t seem to understand that at all. He just stood there, shaking his head helpessly. “But I _always_ kiss you goodbye,” he mumbled.

Matt huffed through his nose, irritated. He looked furtively around. No one was watching—they were running late and everyone else had taken their seats. The halls stretched, empty and echoing around them. Face flaming, Matt heaved a sigh, gave a short nod and presented his cheek.

Gabe kissed it dutifully, accepting that it would be all he got. “See you at lunch?” he said.

Matt groaned. “I don’t know if I’ll make it to lunch.”

oOoOoOo

Matt eschewed his normal table at lunch, scurrying over to sit beside Ryan O’Reilly and his girlfriend, who looked surprised. Matt gave her an apologetic smile. “Um. Is it okay if I sit with you guys? I really can’t . . .” He looked over at his friends—those traitors—who were swishing about and batting their eyes and pretending to be women. “I can’t . . .” he trailed off again.

“Sure, sit down,” Danya said. She had a tarot reading spread out on the table in front of her. With Danya, you never knew if she was doing it for extra credit or just for fun, but she cleared it away so Matt could set his lunch tray down.

Matt plunked himself into the chair next to Ryan and looked at him enviously. “You don’t seem like you care at _all,_ ” he said.

Ryan shrugged. He was wearing a white dress, very simple, and flats, but somehow he seemed to _be_ a real girl. Matt wouldn’t have thought it possible—O’Reilly was one of the youngest guys he knew who actually had to shave for real every day—but the guy seemed totally comfortable. If Matt hadn’t known better, he would have thought Ryan was born a girl. Even his missing tooth only seemed charming, like he was a precocious young waif or a cute tomboy or something.

Ryan smiled at him. “The trick is being at peace with the fact that this is the way things are,” he said.

Matt picked at his food. “Wish I could manage that,” he said glumly.

“Is it because the guys are giving you a hard time?” Danya asked.

Matt glanced at the monkeyhouse again. “Sort of.”

He saw Gabe, standing in the middle of the cafeteria, turning this way and that, and hunched down in his seat. “What’s the matter?” Danya asked, catching his expression. “Did you and Gabe have a fight?”

“No. Not exactly. It’s just that . . . it’s just that he’s acting like nothing’s _changed,_ ” Matt complained. “And it _has._ ”

O’Reilly continued to placidly eat his veggie burger. He never bought the school lunches. He said they were vile.

Danya rested her chin on her hand. “Oh. And you want him . . . to treat you more like a girl?” she guessed.

Matt’s eyes widened. “No! But I . . . I just wish he would back off a bit.”

“That makes sense. You could probably use some time to get used to your body without someone invading your personal space,” Danya observed.

Matt’s mouth dropped. “Yes, that’s it exactly. I couldn’t figure out how to say it,” he admitted.

“There you are!” Matt glanced up to see Gabe had found him. “I thought we were having lunch together.” Danya gestured to the empty seat beside her, but Gabe looked to Matt for approval.

“So sit.”

Looking relieved, Gabe set his tray down. “I thought you were avoiding me,” he said.

Matt stared at his tray and moved his peas and carrots around. If only he knew. How was he supposed to live through a whole week of this?

oOoOoOo

Being a girl did not get any easier. Matt couldn’t find his bra Tuesday morning, and it turned out that EJ had stolen it and hung it from a lamp in the common room. That had been bad enough, but then it turned out Matty couldn’t even _reach_ the damn thing. He’d hopped in place until he heard the guys sniggering.

Gabe had clobbered EJ harder than usual for that, but it didn’t make Matty feel much better. A week ago, even Matt would have found the idea funny, but the reality wasn’t at all amusing. On top of that, Nick had tried to get Matty to show the rest of the guys his boobs. It wasn’t until Iggy threatened to immolate the whole group of them that they’d backed off, but even then they didn’t seem to understand what the big deal was. They all thought they were hilarious.

The day didn’t get any better after that. Honors Alchemy was an absolute _disaster._ Matty just couldn’t focus, and you couldn’t afford to do lab in Allaire’s class if you weren’t going to pay attention. Alchemy was hard at the best of times, and Matt hated to do bad in that class. There were only a couple of guys who were really any good at it, and in Matt’s opinion, they were both kind of crazy. Maybe you had to be crazy to be an alchemist. It was an intimidating class. Francois Allaire was considered one of the most adept men in the world at turning lead into gold, and no one wanted to look stupid in front of him.

He’d put the mercury in the alembic and set it to boil, but he forgot to clean out the wormwart from yesterday’s lab (which he’d promised himself he’d remember to do) and the next thing he knew, the whole damn distillation set was melting into a puddle on the counter, which began to bubble and melt as well. The only thing Matt could do at that point was get out of the way as quickly as possible before any of it got on his shoes.

He stood there, heat rising in his face, as Francois Allaire lecture the class in why one should _always_ be mindful of one’s equipment.

Luckily, before Matt could absolutely die of humiliation, Reto Berra distracted the class by carelessly adding goat’s tord to his salve too early, causing the tar to react and turning him, briefly, into a yellow-bellied marmot.

Everyone laughed.

Matt felt a little better, even though he suspected Reto had done it just to make him feel better. He was kind of a clown that way.

He got sent to Principal Sakic’s office anyway, for destruction of school property. Matt sat in the uncomfortable chair outside his office, staring at an old framed picture of one of the administrators, Pierre Lacroix, that hung over the secretary’s desk. He felt ashamed. Surely being a girl shouldn’t be _that_ hard to get through. What if the principal punished him by making him miss a game or something?

Luckily, Sakic just gave him a short lecture on being more responsible in the future. “I know you’re having a rough time, but please be more careful in the future, okay?”

Matt nodded. “Yes, sir.”

The principal then let Matt go, which was a relief.

He slipped into Crystal Healing 101 and showed the teacher his note, and she let him take his seat. He felt grateful to be able to relax for a bit and was glad he’d chosen to take such an easy course even though his sister had teased him about taking ‘Rocks for Jocks’ just to get a credit. He didn’t care. He wasn’t a brainiac anyway; he just wanted to play hockey. Which was _another_ problem—they had a game Thursday, and here he was, a _girl._ There were rules in place about not hitting him, but he’d still be expected to play. How could he go out on the ice with all those people watching, knowing he had— _breasts,_ and—and _other_ stuff?

He was flipping the page of his textbook as the teacher read, not really following along, when his notebook fluttered a little, indicating someone had charmed him a note. Surreptitiously, he tucked his notebook inside his textbook so he could read it.

It was from Gabe. _I know you are having a crummy day._ _:(_ _I am really sorry! You want to do something together tonight? I want to kiss it all better! #GettinTouchyWithDutchy #SexyMama_

Matt scowled at the message until he thought it would catch fire, then slammed his book closed so hard even the teacher blinked. He gave her an apologetic look and hunched down in his seat. So that was Gabe’s solution to everything, was it? And what was that last part supposed to mean— _sexy mama?_ Was he trying to be _funny?_

Matt silently steamed the rest of the period.

oOoOoOo

By Wednesday Matt had had absolutely enough. He couldn’t take any more. He begged out of gym, telling Coach Roy he wasn’t feeling well.

“You know you supposed to do the whole week,” Roy told him, but his expression was not unsympathetic. “What you got wrong?”

“Girl problems,” Matt managed to grind out. It wasn’t true—they’d scheduled that for the weekend—but technically it wasn’t a lie, either.

In any case, Roy let him out early, even though Matt had a feeling the coach knew he was lying. “Well, take a rest and feel better, okay? I want you come back with more energy and focus.”

“Yes, Coach,” Matt agreed. He slunk through the empty halls, ignoring the rich tapestries and oil paintings, and went straight back to his dorm room. It was nice and dark and empty with all the guys out, still in classes. What a relief. Matt fell into bed and buried his face in the cool pillows.

God, this was so hard. It was bad enough with the guys jeering and being jerks, and then the clothes—even the cotton briefs felt and looked so different than his own underwear—and the shoes were clumsy, or possibly he was clumsy, and just everything was weird and different. He _hated_ having to sit down to pee. He _hated_ trying to figure out how to work his own bra. He hated asking O’Reilly to do it for him. He hated his _whole freaking life._

Matt was sobbing softly into the pillow through clenched teeth when there was a knock at the door. “Go away,” he grunted, hoping he didn’t sound like he was crying.

The door opened anyway. He didn’t turn his head. There was a long, uncertain silence, and then the bed dipped beside him. “Hey, Matty. I was just checking in on you,” Gabe crooned.

Gabe. He hated Gabe worst of _all._

“Go away, Gabe,” he said, voice muffled by the pillows. He felt Gabe’s big, warm hand on his back, and he shrugged it off. “I told you not to touch me!”

Gabe heaved a sigh. “Matty, what is _wrong_ with you? So you’re a _girl._ That’s certainly no big deal. Come on, you act like you’re a mutant or something!”

“It is _too_ a big deal,” Matt gulped.

There was a pause. “Matty, are you _crying?_ Oh, come on, don’t do this. You know I can’t handle crying.  _Jisses,_ Matty, what do I—why are you—? Matty . . . how am I supposed to make you feel better when I can’t even touch you?”

Matt didn’t even care by this point; he had completely given himself over to his sobs, letting them wrack his body. Gabe stroked his hair and murmured his name over and over, and he couldn’t bring himself to protest. Eventually he sort of ran out of steam and sat up, feeling tired and shaky.

“Wow! What happened to your _eyes!?_ ” Gabe exclaimed in alarm.

“Shut up!” Matt shouted, thumping him in the shoulder. “It’s just makeup, stupid.” He wiped his face ineffectually with his sleeve. “Danya did it. She thought it might make me feel better.” He got up and went over to the mirror on the dresser, and took out the little kit Danya had given him. He scrubbed at his face and carefully began reapplying the makeup.

Gabe watched him in puzzled silence. He must have come straight from practice, because he was wearing his Avalanche t and was still damp from the shower, and his hair, usually so carefully arranged, was sticking up in the back.

Weirdly, Matt did feel sort of better once the makeup was back in place, like you couldn’t see all the insecurities bubbling beneath the surface of the coat of paint. He didn’t exactly look pretty, though. All in all, girls shouldn’t have to have noses like his. He heaved a sigh, came back over to Gabe and the bed and crawled back in. He grabbed a pillow and clutched it to his chest, curling into a fetal position. That made him feel better, too.

Gabe leaned back on his elbows in a companionable sort of way, like they usually did when they were just hanging out. “Matty . . . what’s wrong?”

“I don’t know,” Matt mumbled. His long hair was falling over his face, and he liked it that way. He felt more secret and safe when he couldn’t see through the waterfall of mousy brown hair.

“You do, too.” Gabe inched closer. “Are you mad at me?”

“Nuh-uh.” Matt bit his lip, because it was trembling, threatening another bout of tears.

“You are, too. I can tell.” He reached out to touch Matt’s face, but Matt turned away. “ _See?_ You hate me! You act like you can’t stand for me to touch you!” Gabe said in dismay.

“You don’t understand,” Matt said, trying to bury his head in his pillows again.

“I certainly can’t understand, not when your face is buried in blankets,” Gabe told him impatiently. “Come on. What’s wrong? I don’t get it. Why are you making such a big deal about this?”

Matt sat up reluctantly. Gabe really didn’t understand. He was tempted to say that Gabe would find out when he had to do it himself, but Matt suspected that for him, it really _wouldn’t_ be such a big deal. Gabe was happy with who he was, and didn’t have an insecure bone in his body. Gabe would probably have a ton of fun when it was his turn to be a girl. “I can’t explain it to _you,_ ” Matt said mopily, picking at a loose thread in the burgundy bedspread. “You’re so happy with who you are.”

“Well, yeah? Shouldn’t I be?”

Matt glanced up and had to smile wryly. Gabe was the captain of the hockey team, with a letter jacket and everything. On top of being really good at sports, he was also popular and outgoing and kind. And most of all, Gabe was handsome. Matt had never even realized how handsome Gabe was until he got turned into a girl. Of course, he’d liked Gabe plenty, and was happy to be dating him. He’d thought Gabe was cute and all, but it wasn’t really important. Looks, on the whole, just hadn’t been a big factor in things. He was more into Gabe The Hockey Star than he was Gabe The Supermodel. “No, you’re fine,” he huffed.

Gabe looked surprised. “Dutchy . . . are you worried about how _you_ look?” When Matt couldn’t answer right away, he looked worried. “But you always look good to me. Anyway, it never bothered you before.”

Matt rolled over to face the wall. “It didn’t _matter_ before,” he grunted.

“And it matters _now_?” Gabe asked, obviously lost. When Matt refused to answer, he scooted closer and leaned over to see Matt’s face. “Matty, I like your looks. Did you think I thought you were ugly? Because you’re not.” He leaned down until their faces were close, if sort of upside down to each other, and smiled. “I think you are a cute girl,” he said hopefully.

Matt sighed. Gabe, a good-looking, cheerful transfer student from Sweden who had fit right in, was so clueless about some things. “You couldn’t possibly understand,” Matt said with a sigh.

“So tell me.”

“It’s so easy for you. You never get scared.”

“Never get scared! Are you _joking?_ Dutchy, I get scared a lot,” Gabe said earnestly.

“Yeah, right. Like when?” Dutchy replied, feeling mulish.

“All the time! You think I wasn’t scared to come to America? Or when they named me captain even though I’m just a dumb kid? And . . .” he trailed off, and Matt sat up a little, interested in spite of himself.

“And?”

“And I get scared you don’t like me sometimes,” Gabe confessed shyly, his eyes hidden behind his lowered lashes.

“Really?” This was new and surprising information, and Matt turned it over in his head.

Gabe looked at him. He gave Matt a nudge with his knee. “Yeah. So come on. Tell me the truth. Are you upset because you didn’t think I’d like you as a girl?”

Despite himself, Matt’s face crumpled. “Maybe?” he managed. He turned away, pressing his fist hard against his mouth and smearing his lipstick, but it still didn’t stop him crying. “Or maybe,” he choked out, “I thought you’d like me more?”

A number of expressions chased their way across Gabe’s face. “Matty . . .” Gabe spread his arms, and Matt gave in and threw himself onto Gabe’s shoulder and just let it out. He could feel Gabe rubbing his back.

There was something really nice about being able to fit into Gabe’s arms so perfectly. The thought made Matt’s heart ache. “I dunno, Gabe,” he said. “It’s just . . . first when I saw myself in the mirror, I didn’t like it. I _really_ didn’t like it. And for some reason that kinda bugged me more than it should’ve. But then you seemed to like it okay, and _that_ bugged me more than it should have. It’s just . . . it’s just . . .” Matt gritted his teeth and blurted it out: “It’s just that you’ve only ever dated girls, pretty girls, and I’m _not_ a girl, and having you like me like this makes me feel like maybe you don’t like me so much as a boy. Like—like it makes me just sick. All I can think about is how you’re gonna get bored of me one of these days because I can’t—because I can’t be what you want.” Matt was _really_ crying now, just all-out bawling, but Gabe seemed to understand even with all the hitching breaths and gulps and sniffles. “But then if you don’t—then I get worried you don’t like me as a girl—and that makes me feel all upset and angry too. Like, I want you to want me no matter who I am. I don’t know, Gabe. I’m sorry. There’s just no pleasing me.”

“Aw, Dutchy, it’s okay.  It certainly doesn’t make a difference to me, Matty. I love you the same no matter what.”

Matt stared at the wet stain on Gabe’s shirt. “Really?”

“I promise.” Gabe took him by the shoulders and held him at arm’s length. “Dutchy, if I liked girls more than I liked you, I wouldn’t have kept on dating you. The truth is, I like girls okay, but I liked you even more. I like you better than _anything,_ Matty. Better than girls or candy or air or water or even hockey. All I want in the whole world is for you to like me back, no matter if you’re a girl or a boy.”

Matt sagged. “Thanks, Gabe.” Matt believed him, too. Gabe could be flaky or immature sometimes, but he was always honest. Somehow the relief made him feel warm all the way down to his toes.

Gabe beamed. “Can I kiss you, or would it still make you uncomfortable?”

Matt smiled. “You can kiss me.”

Gabe leaned in and kissed him so sweetly—and so chastely—that Matt had to laugh. Gabe had been such an unselfish boyfriend, right from the very beginning. Matt remembered how Gabe used to follow him around, back when his English wasn’t very good, and Matt had thought he just admired Matt’s hockey skills, or that he looked up to Matt (or down to, considering their heights), since Matt was a little older. It had taken weeks before he’d noticed that the looks Gabe gave him weren’t so much admiring as they were completely lovesick. It had been just plain embarrassing at first, the way Gabe was always trying to buy things for him and carry his stuff and just spoil Matt rotten, but after a while Matt’s defenses broke down. As far as Matt knew, there was no wall in the world that could stand up against Gabe’s longing glances. After a while you found yourself looking back, and once he got you trapped in those soft blue eyes, you were gone.

Even now, wearing somebody else’s body, Matt couldn’t help but squirm as he watched Gabe grin, his broad shoulders now square and confident. He really was lucky to have such an understanding—and patient—guy.

Grinning, Matt reached out to grab his shirt and pull him close for a real kiss.

Gabe made a surprised noise, but didn’t object. Matt discovered he didn’t mind—it didn’t feel any different from usual, Gabe’s warm, questing tongue. The lipstick was different though, slick and kind of exciting. Gabe reached out, not daring to do more than touch, his questing, trembling fingers skimming up and down Matt’s sides.

When they pulled apart for breath, Matty was flushed and panting.

“You want to stop?” Gabe asked.

Wordlessly, Matt shook his head hard.

A slow grin burned its way across Gabe’s face. He pushed Matty back down against the pillows, kissing him deeply. Matt gave in and wrapped his legs around one of Gabe’s, seeking friction. “More?” Gabe murmured, kissing his ear. One of his hands played at the nape of Matty’s neck, stroking up and down, making him shiver.

“Don’t be a tease,” Matt croaked with false bravado.

Gabe laughed softly and nuzzled his nose against Matt’s. “I promise, whatever you have between your legs, I can make you like it,” he said hoarsely. “I can make you happy, Matty. I _promise.”_

Matt’s face burned, but he bit his lip and nodded. He wanted Gabe, wanted as much as he could get of him, any way he could.

Gabe flipped up the hem of his skirt, trailing a lazy thumb over Matty’s thigh. Matt blushed more brightly at being exposed this way—particularly with the less-than-utilitarian lace panties he’d put on this morning hoping it would make him feel more, well, confident. He was sure Gabe would laugh, but he only stared, blinking, his own face slowly reddening, like a sunset flaming over his features. “Oh, _wow,_ Matty,” he gasped. “Sexy red panties?”

“They’re _team colors._ Well, one of the team colors.” Embarrassed, Matt slugged him. “Staring isn’t polite,” he mumbled. “Would you just—something—already?”

Gabe gave him a brief look of triumph. “Yes, if that’s what you want.” Before Matt could ask what he meant, exactly, Gabe leant down and kissed a warm kiss to his abdomen, and began rolling down his panties. If Matt had his dick it would sure be hard right now, but he felt that same ache of arousal all the same, building in his belly, tingling and aching in his labia. 

Gabe nuzzled his face against Matt’s skin, his warm cheek caressing his stomach, his thigh, his hip, making him tremble. He felt Gabe’s hot breath, Gabe’s strong hand on the inner side of his thigh, urging him to spread his legs. He could feel himself growing wetter.

Gabe kissed his way down, spreading him open, and Matt squeaked and squirmed.

Then Gabe’s tongue, slick and hot, slid into his body, played over his clitoris. Matt yelped, pressing a sweaty hand to his mouth to keep from crying out again. Gabe reached up to take his other hand, squeezing it as Matt whimpered and writhed as Gabe kissed his clit. It was too much—almost immediately it was too much—but Gabe continued to lick him gently, murmuring broken Swedish against his skin between kisses and licks.

“Gabe—“ was all Matt could get out. He couldn’t even think of any other words. Gabe had always been amazing at kissing, but Matt had never really considered what else he could do with his tongue. It felt strange and exciting and intimate to have Gabe’s tongue explore him, sliding into and over his body.

Gabe made a soft noise, driving his tongue into the depths of Matty’s body, and simultaneously stroked Matt’s clitoris with his thumb, working Matt into such a state that his heels were pressed into the mattress, his body thrusting of its own accord, rubbing himself shamelessly against Gabe’s mouth.

Matty cried out softly as his climax hit him in hot waves, Gabe still eating him out as he whimpered. When he came to himself, he realized he had one hand fisted in Gabe’s hair, where he’d been trying to urge him on. He quickly loosened his grip and Gabe sat back, wincing a little.

“Jeeze, Matty, you play _rough_ as a girl. Next time watch the flow, okay?” He smoothed his hair fastidiously.

Matt laughed sheepishly. “Sorry.”

Gabe’s face lit up.

“What?”

“I recognize that smile. That is the real Matt Duchene.” Gabe’s own smile turned soft. “I missed it.”

Matt felt sort of wibbly. “Yeah? I’m sorry I’ve been such a pain. I had a real meltdown, didn’t I?”

Gabe laughed. “I dunno, I thought it was kind of sweet that you worry what I think of you. Anyway, it was still easier than sophomore year when you did the animal transformation. _That_ was a nightmare.”

“Oh, come on. I wasn’t _that_ bad.”

“You got out of your crate and ran out of the school and I had to chase you for nearly an hour before I caught you! I thought you would run into the street and get hit by a car! I nearly had a heart attack! And then when I got you inside, at dinnertime you leapt onto the table and wolfed down all of Pauly’s dinner and made a huge mess and _I_ was the one that got yelled at for letting you off your leash. You remember the principal glaring at me? You just stood there wagging your stupid tail and panting with your tongue out—and a very stupid expression on your furry face.” Gabe rolled his eyes.

Matt was laughing so hard that for a moment it felt the last week hadn’t happened. “I remember that. It seemed so funny at the time.”

As annoyed as Gabe was, he couldn’t stay angry with Matty, especially now that his bad mood had been broken. He crawled up to him and kissed him on the cheek. “I’m glad you feel better,” he said.

Matty smiled, still feeling all afterglowy and hot. “What about you?” he asked shyly. “You want me to . . .?”

Gabe flushed to his hairline and fidgeted in embarrassment. “I sort of—already—”

Matt glanced down and saw the front of his trousers had a dark spot. Gabe had probably stuck a hand down his pants, or even just rubbed one out against the bed. He grinned. That was one downside of being a teenage boy. He understood. The first time they’d made out—in an equipment closet, no less, after practice—it had taken all of ten steamy, squrirmy minutes, the tip of Gabe’s tongue darting into his ear, and one of Gabe’s big, square hands brushing the front of his jeans before Matt had totally come in his pants. “It’s okay, Landy,” he assured him. “No big deal. Maybe later?”

Gabe brightened up. “Sure.”

“We do have a few more days to fool around,” Matty added, blushing a little.

Gabe crawled over on top of him and kissed him warmly. “I promise this will be one Transformation Credit you will never forget—and you will love every minute,” he growled.

Matt giggled. He could stand the rest of the week—as long as he knew he’d still have Gabe at the end of it, no matter what. “We should try to make it to the last class of the day,” he said reluctantly. “I don’t want to, but it’s Bewitching and I already have a demerit for skipping out early in that class for game day last week. I missed the last ten minutes and I don’t want to fall behind.”

“You want me to walk you?”

Matty beamed. “You betcha.” He let Landy give him a big kiss before they hurried to change underwear. He felt somewhat better about his weird body now, but the thought of Gabe’s face between his legs still made him feel flushed and titillated, his skin tingling at the memory. Boy, he was going to have to be careful to not let his mind wander to _that_ in class. On the other hand, at least he wouldn’t be in danger of popping a boner. Still, he noticed his panties were quickly getting moist at the very thought, and he should be careful and just not go there. And even though he was more comfortable, he still changed with his back to Gabe.

“You ready?” Gabe asked, and he turned and nodded.

They headed down the hall, their hands clasped together in a somewhat sweaty knot. Every time Gabe smiled goofily at him, Matt ducked his head and blushed.

To Matt’s surprise, the halls weren’t yet empty; they still had time to get to class. As they passed Danya’s locker, she smiled and waved. “Hey, Dutchy. You look much happier than you did the other day. I’m not surprised. I did a reading for you and ended up with Eight of Swords reversed. You know the Eight of Swords, right? A blindfolded, tied up woman standing amidst eight swords with a stream of water between her legs?” Matt flushed. “It meant that you would realize you had options and become more open to change and self-acceptance.” She smiled brightly at the two of them.

Just then, Bordy walked by. “Uh, oh, something’s _showing,_ ” he said in a sing-song, and reached out to where Danya’s bra strap peeked out between the neck and shoulder of her shirt. He snapped the strap with a grin. Danya just rolled her eyes, but Matt felt boiling indignation on behalf of his friend.

When Bordy turned his back Matty reached right out and—despite the fact that it would mean _instant_ suspension from the team if he got caught—grabbed Patrick Bordeleau’s shoulder and hit him with a howling hex.

Instantly, Bordy began making loud, incomprehensible yeti noises. He tried to hit Matt, but Gabe shoved him back.

“Mr. Bordeleau! What you think you’re doing, making a racket in the hall?” Matt whirled to see Coach Roy bearing down on them, with the principal at his side, no less. Bordy howled and gestured, but he was totally unintelligible. “Fuck sake, you have Necromancy last period, right? You go and get possessed?”

Bordy shook his head frantically and barked, but that didn’t prove anything—if he had been possessed, he’d definitely say no.

“You go down and have the nurse check you over,” Sakic told him.

“OoooooOOOOOOooooowwwwwooooOOOO,” Bordy agreed, resigned. The hex would wear off by the time he got there. Gabe gave him a threatening look. If Bordy told on Matt, Matt would retaliate by telling how he’d touched Danya without permission. Bordy seemed to accept that they were at an impass, and slouched away, still wailing under his breath.

“The rest of you kids get to class too,” Principal Sakic told them. “You’re gonna be late.”

“Yes, sir,” Danya said, and they all straightened up and tried to look like model students and scurried away.

“That the problem with boys these days,” Matty heard Coach Roy remark to Principal Sakic as they walked away. “You can’t tell if they possessed or just assholes.”

Matt looked over his shoulder to watch the men strolling away down the hall.

Principal Sakic laughed. “Says the guy who got suspended three separate times for fighting,” he replied in a teasing voice.

Coach Roy looked surprised, but then he laughed really hard. Then he flung an arm around the principal’s shoulders as they walked away. “Eh, I guess we all got a little bit of demon in us at that age,” he admitted.

Danya nudged Matt as they headed to class. “Did you get everything sorted out, then?”

Matt swallowed and tried to think of what to say, but before he could stutter anything out, Gabe smiled and gave her his most innocent look and said, “Oh, yeah. Certainly. We totally licked his problem.”

Face flaming, Matt yelped and tried to stomp on Gabe’s foot, but Gabe laughed and danced out of reach. “Stupid jerk,” Matty grumbled.

“Haha, you like me anyway,” Gabe teased. He offered Matty his hand.

Matt softened and took it. “Yeah, I do,” he admitted.


End file.
